I am an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Illinois Springfield. My research focuses on candidates and competition in congressional elections, political institutions, specifically Congress and political parties, and representation.
At UIS, my current rotation of courses includes PSC 402: Legislative Politics, PSC 406: The American Presidency, PSC 407: Campaigns & Elections, PSC 409: Political Parties & Interest Groups, PSC 451: Empirical Political Analysis, PSC 502: Methods of Inquiry, PSC 511: (Graduate) Seminar in American Politics, PSC 512: (Graduate) Seminar in Comparative State Politics, and PSC 517: (Graduate) Seminar on Congress. In addition to teaching traditional, in-person classes, I frequently teach online classes (both synchronous and asynchronous) and HyFlex classes.
My work has appeared in the Political Behavior, American Politics Research, the Journal of Women, Politics, & Policy, Party Politics, State Politics and Policy Quarterly, Political Research Quarterly, Social Science Quarterly, and Congress and the Presidency. Additionally, I have presented my research at several professional conferences including the American Political Science Association annual meeting, the Midwest Political Science Association annual meeting, the Southern Political Science Association annual meeting, and the State Politics and Policy Conference.
Prior to joining the University of Illinois Springfield, I earned my BS in Political Science at Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida, and my MA and PhD in Political Science at the University of Oklahoma. Additionally, I’ve served as a Graduate Fellow at the Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center and as a Congressional Intern for former Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen.
Contact: mgera2@uis.edu
